Angiopoietins stimulate pancreatic islet development from stem cells

Sci Rep. 2021 Jun 30;11(1):13558. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-92922-5.

Abstract

In vitro differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) into functional islets holds immense potential to create an unlimited source of islets for diabetes research and treatment. A continuous challenge in this field is to generate glucose-responsive mature islets. We herein report a previously undiscovered angiopoietin signal for in vitro islet development. We revealed, for the first time, that angiopoietins, including angiopoietin-1 (Ang1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang2) permit the generation of islets from iPSCs with elevated glucose responsiveness, a hallmark of mature islets. Angiopoietin-stimulated islets exhibited glucose synchronized calcium ion influx in repetitive glucose challenges. Moreover, Ang2 augmented the expression of all islet hormones, including insulin, glucagon, somatostatin, and pancreatic polypeptide; and β cell transcription factors, including NKX6.1, MAFA, UCN3, and PDX1. Furthermore, we showed that the Ang2 stimulated islets were able to regulate insulin exocytosis through actin-filament polymerization and depolymerization upon glucose challenge, presumably through the CDC42-RAC1-gelsolin mediated insulin secretion signaling pathway. We also discovered the formation of endothelium within the islets under Ang2 stimulation. These results strongly suggest that angiopoietin acts as a signaling molecule to endorse in vitro islet development from iPSCs.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Angiopoietin-1 / pharmacology*
  • Angiopoietin-2 / pharmacology*
  • Cell Differentiation / drug effects*
  • Humans
  • Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells / metabolism*
  • Islets of Langerhans / metabolism*
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects*

Substances

  • ANGPT1 protein, human
  • ANGPT2 protein, human
  • Angiopoietin-1
  • Angiopoietin-2